Officials Attempt to Stymie Scammers With Unified Demolition Plan

By Alison St John / Reporter, KPBS Public Broadcasting

Published October 31, 2007 at 12:07 PM PDT

This story was published more than 17 years ago.

State and local officials want a single contract to demolish all the properties destroyed in the fires. They hope this will protect homeowners from scammers, and make sure hazardous debris is properly

State and local officials want a single contract to demolish all the properties destroyed in the fires. They hope this will protect homeowners from scammers, and make sure hazardous debris is properly disposed of. KPBS reporter Alison St John has more.

The first step in recovery is to clear out the debris of the 2,000 burned out structures. Both the city and the county of San Diego plan to offer homeowners a demolition service certified to deal with the hazardous materials lurking in the ashes.

County Supervisor Bill Horn says this'll save homeowners from having to hunt down reliable demolition contractors.

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Horn : Just don't go out and sign some contract, we have a lot of shysters coming in here and offering services. Don't pay them any money whatsoever. If you're going to get paid for clean up, it'll be paid for by your insurance company and if you weren't insured we will deal with FEMA, so don't rush into anything.

State emergency funds may front the money for a coordinated clean up -- which would then be reimbursed by individuals' insurance policies. However the contract might take well over a month to complete.

Alison St John, KPBS News.

Alison St John

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Alison St John currently serves as a general assignment reporter and occasionally co-hosts KPBS Midday Edition. She fell in love with KPBS Radio when she arrived in San Diego in 1985 and first heard NPR. She has been a voice on KPBS Radio since 1989, and has served as a news reporter for radio, TV and the web, as well as anchoring, hosting, producing and editing. Alison has reported on stories about North County and was based in the KPBS' North County Bureau. Alison covered the metro beat during the critical period of the San Diego City pension crisis, and the education beat while Alan Bersin was the controversial Superintendent of San Diego City School District. She covered health when the industry was converting to managed care and told welfare reform stories in the late 1990s when Clinton was “ending welfare as we know it.” She has covered land use issues extensively, looking at the challenges of meeting a growing population while preserving community character, and developing a better transportation system to meet environmental concerns. She has done many stories on the military in San Diego, and the series she edited on the challenges veterans face returning from active duty to civilian life won “Best of Show” from the San Diego Society of Professional Journalists. She occasionally hosts the KPBS Roundtable and KPBS Midday Edition. Alison has won awards from the San Diego Press Club, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Associated Press TV and Radio Association, and the California Golden Mike Awards. Alison was born in Tanzania, brought up in Scotland, and earned her degree in psychology and sociology from Durham University in England. Her postgraduate diploma is in student counseling. She worked in England, Nigeria, Switzerland, Belgium, India, and Japan before moving to the United States in 1981. She now lives in Oceanside and enjoys how her community is growing and changing.